Doc. Dr. Sc. Jelena Đugum was born in 1973 in Zagreb. She received her B.Sc. degree in food engineering (1998), and her PhD in the scientific area of biotechnical sciences (2007) at the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology in Zagreb. In 2005, she started working for the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management as the Expert Associate for Food Quality, and in 2006 she was at the position of Head of Department for Food Processing Industry. From 2008 to 2011 she was at the position of Director of the Directorate for Food Safety and Quality in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development.

From January 2012 to November 2013, in the Ministry of Agriculture, she was the Head of Service for Labelling Quality Products and from November 2013 to December 2016 the Senior Adviser- Specialist. Currently she is Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Agriculture and the president of the Management Board of Croatian Food Agency.

Doc. Dr. Sc. Jelena Đugum was the associate in numerous scientific and technology/ professional projects (The mechanisms of degradation of biopolymers during extrusion, Mechanism controlled degradation of carbohydrates during the extrusion process, FutureFood 6, Production and use of starter cultures, Bakery products with high nutritional value, Production of extruded cereal flour…).

During her professional life, she finished a series of foreign education related to food engineering, food safety and labelling, and risk assessment.

She is a member of the 4 societies: Society of Food Technologists, Biotechnologists and Nutritionists, Society of University Professors and other Scientists in Zagreb, the Croatian-Austrian Society and the American Association of Cereal Chemists.

Also, she was a member of two working groups for preparing negotiations for Chapter 11. Agriculture and Rural Development and 12. Food Safety, Veterinary and Phytosanitary Policy and a member of the working group for the Development of Industrial Policy Strategy.